


maybe in another life

by AwakeAndAliveSpartan



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Canon Divergent, F/M, Future Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-11
Updated: 2020-08-11
Packaged: 2021-03-06 10:41:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25848247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AwakeAndAliveSpartan/pseuds/AwakeAndAliveSpartan
Summary: Skye takes her son to tell his father good news.And he learns that maybe people never really leave you.
Relationships: Skye | Daisy Johnson/Grant Ward
Comments: 4
Kudos: 41





	maybe in another life

“Mom!”

Skye looked up with a sigh as her teenage son came barreling into the room and closed her laptop, the mail in his hands. “Is that the mail, Adian?” she asked, reaching out a hand. “Give me any bills.”

“It’s just this, but look!” Adian shoved an envelope into his mother’s face. “It’s from SHIELD!”

Skye blinked and took the envelope, clearly already ripped open. She looked at it, seeing the all-too-familiar eagle insignia stamped onto the paper, the words  _ SHIELD Academy of Operations _ written below it. And sure enough it was addressed to one Adian Leo Ward. She looked at him and raised an eyebrow, “You couldn’t wait long enough to get into the house?”

“No.”

“So, what’s it say?” Honestly, she already knew. Operation’s headmaster was one Antione Triplett after all. He had called her in the middle of a hack job to tell her the good news the other day; Skye had wanted to wait for Adian to get the letter, so she hadn’t said anything to him yet.

“I got in!” Adian beamed. He pointed at the envelope. “It says that my test scores were the highest of all the applications.”

Skye smiled and nodded, “You are your father’s son, Adian. You do know he had the highest marks since Natasha Romanoff, right? God, he always bragged about that.” she asked. “It’s no surprise that you did so well. You’re just like him. I’m proud of you.”

She pulled out a paper from the envelope, her eyes skimming the paper.

_ “Name: Ward, Adian Leo. Species: Pure Inhuman. Power Classification: High-end pyrogenesis/kinesis. Rank: 1 of 250. Status: Accepted.” _

The Academy had within the last few years had changed things up. It was no longer some super secret place and had been redesigned for those with powers. They had started to accept cadets right out of high school, taking the place of college for many. It gave gifteds the chance to be heroes. A place where they could be themselves. Adian had always wanted to follow in his parents’ footsteps, even if Skye was a little hesitant to let the eighteen-year-old go into something potentially dangerous. 

Skye stood to her feet, taking Adian into a hug. She pulled away and looked up at him. At six foot four, he towered over her like his father did. “Did you want to go tell your father?” she asked softly. “I’m sure he’d love to hear it. I can take a break for the day.”

Adian’s face softened, “Yeah. I do.” he answered. “Can we go now?”

“Yeah, I can just pick us up something to eat on the way home. Grab your letter, I’m sure that he would want to see it.” Skye walked over to the kitchen counter and picked up her keys. The two made their way outside and Skye locked the house up, making sure that their two German shepherds were safely inside. 

They got into her car and she pulled out of the driveway as Adian stared at the envelope that was still in his hands. He still couldn’t believe it. Even if being the son of two SHIELD legends gave him a certain boost, it was still unbelievable. He knew that his father would be proud at how far he had come.

They were in the car for about fifteen minutes before Skye pulled into a fenced-off area right outside the Triskellion grounds. The gate above them was marked  _ “SHIELD Memorial Park”. _ They drove around the maze-like grounds until Skye stopped and parked outside a small, well-maintained strip. “Go ahead, Adian, I’ll catch up with you in a moment. I need to make a phone call first.”

Adian looked at her and nodded, his eyes already wet. A part of him hated being here because it reminded him of the day he thought he lost everything. He opened the car door and stepped out of the car, his envelope still clutched in his hands. He made his way down an all-too-familiar path that had been walked almost every single day since that fateful day two years ago towards a shining obsidian stone that was surrounded by blood red flowers. He smiled and knelt down in front of the marker. 

“Hey, Dad. I’ve got some good news. You’re not going to believe this.” he said, his voice small. He placed the envelope on the ground. “I thought that you would want to know. I got into Operations. Top of the application list. Guess I’m just as good as you.” His smile grew, “I start in August. I move in at the end of July. And if everything goes well, I’ll graduate in four years and I’ll be an agent just like you. Maybe I’ll be the next Hellfire. Well, that’s what Uncle Trip said, anyways.”

Adian reached out a hand and started to trace the letters that were etched upon the obsidian marker. 

_ “Grant Douglas Ward. 01/07/1983 - 05/18/2034. Loving father, husband, and hero.”  _

He traced the flames that had been carved out into the obsidian. His Uncle Fitz had done that as a joke, but Skye had actually loved it in the end. The whole headstone had been a joke on Fitz’s end. Obsidian carved with flames, marking the final resting place of a devil. Something that his father would’ve definitely laughed at.

Tears pricked at the corners of his eyes as he remembered that day. 

It was two years ago. He remembered being in the middle of 10th grade geometry when he was called out of class out of the blue. He had gone to the office to see his Aunt Jem standing there, tears in her eyes. A mission gone wrong. A single bullet, they had said. Right through the heart. His father’s powers hadn’t been able to save him that time since the heart had been damaged. He had bled out in Skye’s arms before rescue teams could come. They hadn’t been able to revive him.

Adian remembered standing in the back of that chapel, his Papa giving a eulogy of all the hell his father had gone through, the hero born out of hellfire. The small church had been filled to the brim with friends, family, and those who had just wanted to pay their respects. His father had died a hero, saving a bunch of Inhumans from Hydra hands. His death had sent shocks through SHIELD since he was a high-ranking commander. Even the world had mourned when the news that the hero Hellfire had been killed. Everyone thought that he had been invincible, that nothing could kill Hellfire. He had always seemed to rebound after every injury that he would sustain. But, a single bullet had proved to be his end.

“You know that he’s proud of you, Adian.”

He looked up to see his mother standing next to him. He hadn’t even noticed her walk up. “Yeah, I know, but it’s just weird. I’m still expecting him to pick me up in one of his bear hugs where I have to beg him to put me down.” he stated, his voice small. “He was there for every little achievement and now he’s not. It was weird at graduation and he wasn’t there when I looked out from the stage.”

Skye placed a gentle hand on her son’s shoulder, “You know that he was there, Adian.” she answered. “He’s always watching, even if you can’t physically see him. I swear that I can still feel him sometimes.”

Adian turned his gaze back to the marker, “I… I just want to hug him one last time, Mom. I never got to that day. You two left before I woke up for school and the next time I saw him… He was in a fucking casket.”

She gave him a slight slap on the back of his head, “Watch your language, Adian. You have a mouth just like your father.” she said. “But, yeah… I still wake up in the middle of the night expecting to see his arm around me. I still have nightmares about him bleeding out in my arms and I run through countless scenarios of what ifs, trying to see if there had been any way to save him. 

But, there’s no way to change the past, Adian.” she continued, her hand still on his shoulder. “You just have to move on and do what will make him proud. I know that his legacy is a lot to live up to, but I think you can do it. He  _ knows  _ that you can do it. Now, come on, let’s go get something to eat. We’re having a party tomorrow, I just talked to your Papa.”

Adian groaned, “Don’t let Uncle Fizz bring a monkey again.” he stated, grabbing the envelope and rising to his feet. 

“I am not responsible for anything Leopold Fitz tries to do and that includes anything monkey-related. That’s your Aunt Jem’s job. We’ll come back here after the party and maybe we can decorate the marker for him. How about that?” Skye wrapped her arm around Adian’s. She went to lead him away, but he suddenly stopped. “Adian? What’s wrong, baby?”

A hot breeze whistled in his ear and he turned around to look back at the grave. He swore he had seen the smallest of embers float by the flowers. He smiled, tear streaming down his face. Maybe his father really was watching over him. Maybe he had never truly died, he had simply moved on to another life. To a new job. He was no longer everyone’s protector, but he was now solely his and his mother’s protector. 

“I love you, too, Dad.”

**Author's Note:**

> I know that it's not overly-Skyeward, but I had to write this. Not much to say about it other than it was an idea that crossed my mind the other day and I just had to make it into a fic. I hoped that you enjoyed! Find me on Tumblr @grantwrd!


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